Gianni Alemanno
| Gianni Alemanno | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| 63rd Mayor of Rome | |
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 28 April 2008 |
|
| Preceded by | Walter Veltroni |
| Minister of Agriculture | |
| In office June 11, 2001 – May 17, 2006 |
|
| Prime Minister | Silvio Berlusconi |
| Preceded by | Alfonso Pecoraro Scanio |
| Succeeded by | Paolo De Castro |
| Personal details | |
| Born | March 3, 1958 Bari, Italy |
| Nationality | Italian |
| Political party | People of Freedom |
| Spouse(s) | Isabella Rauti |
Giovanni "Gianni" Alemanno (born 3 March 1958 in Bari, Italy) is an Italian politician who is currently Mayor of Rome.
Contents |
[edit] Career
He joined the Italian Social Movement, at a very early age and became national secretary of the youth organization of the party in 1988. After being elected regional deputy of Lazio in 1990, he was elected for the first time to the Chamber of Deputies in the 1994 general election.
In 1995, along with Francesco Storace, he founded the Social Right, which was intended to be the more right-wing, socially oriented and socially conservative faction within National Alliance, the new party in which the Italian Social Movement was merged after repudation of extremism.
Between 2001 and 2006 Alemanno was Minister of Agriculture in Berlusconi II and III Cabinet.
[edit] Mayor of Rome
After having been heavily defeated by Walter Veltroni in the 2006 mayoral election of Rome, in April 2008 he defeated Francesco Rutelli and became Mayor of the city. Alemanno rejected a formal alliance with the far-right party, but his critics emphasized that his victory was greeted by crowds of supporters, among them far right skinheads, who chanted "Duce! Duce!" and raised their arms in a fascist salute;[1] then Alemanno said: «People calling me Duce makes me laugh. I’m not at all fascist and I think that today the word belongs to the history books. I’ve grown to hate all forms of totalitarianism, whether of the left or of the right».[2]
In August 2008 Alemanno caused a controversy when Romanian Gypsy shepherds attacked a Dutch couple that had been camping outside of Rome. The couple was beaten and robbed and the woman was raped. Alemanno stated that the couple had been "very careless" by camping in an area "forgotten by God and man" where camping was illegal.[3] Alemanno said that the attack was an isolated case, and repeated to want to crack down on crime, regaining total control of the territory.
In November 2008, Alemanno decided to build a museum dedicated to the memory of the Holocaust inside a Roman park. The leader of Rome's Jewish community, Riccardo Pacifici, praised the mayor for this project.[4]
Alemanno is the son-in-law of Pino Rauti, a former leader of the Italian Social Movement. He always wears a necklace with a celtic cross.[5] He stated he wears it only as a religious symbol and because of a personal meaning for him, being a jewel worn by his friend Paolo di Nella, a far right militant that had been killed during the '70s Anni di Piombo.[6]
The approval of the Romans to the mayor Alemanno rose to 60% in January 2009.[7]
In February 2009 Alemanno conferred honorary citizenship to Dalai Lama, leader of the Tibetan government-in-exile.[8] In July 2009, Alemanno conferred honorary citizenship to captive Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit.[9]
[edit] References
- ^ Squires, Nick (2008-09-08). "Italian politicians 'praise' fascist era of Benito Mussolini". The Daily Telegraph (London). http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/italy/2706408/Italian-politicians-praise-fascist-era-of-Benito-Mussolini.html. Retrieved 2010-05-03.(English)
- ^ "The Right Takes Rome". http://norumbega.co.uk/2008/05/12/the-right-takes-rome/.(English)
- ^ Owen, Richard (2008-08-25). "Attack on pilgrim tourists reignites Italy's row over immigrants". The Times (London). http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article4602567.ece. Retrieved 2010-05-03.(English)
- ^ Il Messaggero. "Alemanno: il museo della Shoah sarà completato entro il 2011". http://www.ilmessaggero.it/articolo.php?id=34886&sez=HOME_ROMA.(Italian)
- ^ "Alemanno mostra la croce celtica scontro in tv con Daria Bignardi". http://www.repubblica.it/2006/05/sezioni/spettacoli_e_cultura/croce-alemanno/croce-alemanno/croce-alemanno.html.(Italian)
- ^ "Alemanno: la mia croce celtica è solo un simbolo religioso". http://www.corriere.it/politica/08_aprile_20/alemanno_croce%20_celtica_1d42c05e-0ee9-11dd-b370-00144f486ba6.shtm.(Italian)
- ^ "Roma promuove Alemanno: gradimento al 60%". http://iltempo.ilsole24ore.com/interni_esteri/2009/01/09/974023-roma_promuove_alemanno_gradimento.shtml.(Italian)
- ^ "Dalai Lama made honorary citizen of Rome". http://www.news.com.au/story/0,27574,25033523-401,00.html.[dead link](English)
- ^ http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jBpTZgdServOsBatthPCqBP5_e8A
[edit] External links
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Alfonso Pecoraro Scanio |
Italian Minister of Agriculture 2001–2006 |
Succeeded by Paolo De Castro |
| Preceded by Walter Veltroni |
Mayor of Rome 2008-present |
Succeeded by Incumbent |
